Monday, February 2, 2015

Cackalack For A Job - Nightmare In The Workplace

Originally posted: June 30, 2013 at 11:58am

A
few weeks ago news reports told the story of a prominent businessman
who had been arrested for incest with his daughter. Committing this most
despicable of acts daddy-loose-draws remains unnamed because of
provisions in the law which dictate that both the victim and alleged
perpetrator remain anonymous until a verdict is reached in the case.
Don't worry, St. Lucia is a small place and we all know the salop! This
jolted my mind to recall the intention which I have had for a very long
time to write on a serious malaise which is very prevalent in St. Lucian
society. In fact this has gone beyond simply a malaise and has attained
epidemic proportions.

More than twenty years ago in St.
Lucia I was friends with a rather attractive young lady who had been
seeking employment in Castries. She recounted to me one day about an
interview which she had a few hours earlier. It was at a business place
in the vicinity of Vigie Airport/La Clery/Vide Bouteille. Going through
the usual interview motions and cheerful banter with the boss made her
feel confident that this job was almost hers. Towards the end he
suggested that she return after 5 PM so that he would be less distracted
with the responsibilities of work, and be able to confirm that she was
indeed able to perform her duties if she was indeed hired. Feeling
elated about this rather promising prospect she agreed to return.

It
was promptly 5 PM when she was called into his office and the door
closed behind her. After a few phone calls he directed his attention to
my aptly bosomed friend and was down to business in next to no time with
suggestive comments about her looks and then asked her to take a ride
with him. He indicated that they could go have some drinks and then take
a drive down to the Vigie quarry (the abandoned quarry near the Vigie
airport hangar). Well my friend was having none of that bulshittery; she
told him where to stuff his drinks and what to do with himself in the
quarry.

This businessman has been well known, in fact
notorious, for preying on women in search of employment. If there were a
Nobel prize for sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour he would
have received it.

Many of our St. Lucian women have
endured this same type of harassment in seeking employment, and
lamentably some have fallen victim to these sexual advances because of
their financial situations. Having secured jobs under this duress they
are now continually pressured to have sexual relations with the boss or
supervisor in order to retain their employment. Eventually this
situation becomes untenable resulting in frustration and anger about
their predicament.

The reactions, when confronted with
such advances, can be varied and evokes different emotions. Some women
may walk out of the interview, others may be numbed with surprise, and
others will let the offender have a piece of their sharp tongue. And
then of course there are those who may just lay down on the office table
and spread it or go for drinks and that ride to the Vigie quarry. Lets
not be naive here, there are some women who will enjoy the temporary
power of being with the boss because they may receive preferential
treatment and have certain 'perks' on the job. Sometimes the wanton
fraternizing with female staff is well known on the job and usually
degenerates into an all out conflict for the affections of the boss or
supervisor.

Then there are those who decide to just close
their eyes and do it one time, just to get in. Unfortunately the
unscrupulous boss sees this as another conquest to be had at his whims
and fancies. Eventually this woman decides to cut off the sexual
encounters with her boss because she may feel guilty, have a new
boyfriend, or just decide that she no longer wants to continue having
sexual relations. This is when the retaliation begins. Persons who no
longer want to 'pass-it' are victimized, given menial tasks, or fired.

Posting
the preview to my Sunday topic last Wednesday I was bombarded, within
minutes, with private comments from persons anxious to share personal
experiences. They mentioned names , businesses. Surprisingly an
overwhelming number of complaints mentioned government departments. It
seems there are some notorious senior civil servants known by all and
sundry. My information is that many complaints have been lodged against a
particular individual...all for naught. Could it be that it's just
another old boys' club and complaints to the higher ups are squashed
because they are all in it together. Would the lack of action equate to
the sexual abuse cover ups which went on for more than one hundred years
in the Catholic church?

Within five minutes of posting here is what someone commented:

Like
your topic...........this is prevalent at my work place where the head
man is concerned......the young women who have just left school and
come to (**government department**) are targeted by the
sicko.....especially those who have financial difficulty......making
all kinds of suggestive remarks, promises, asking for phone numbers and
requests to meet after work.........the young people are afraid to
come forward and he continues and just denies..........sometimes I wish
it was a relative for me to tumble down in his ass this shit
upsets me. The worse part is that reports have been made to people
higher than him and I guess nothing can be done without hard evidence.
The thing is everyone in the department is aware...........and no one is
surprised.......it's expected

Here is what someone else commented:

I
have lost a lot of respect for a number of people that are involved in
the cover up, of not just that, but corruption too. People we all grew up
having the utmost respect for.

This is just
the tip of the iceberg as these stories have been recounted over the
years many times, but what does one do about being faced with a
situation like this? Where is a report made after such pressures and
brought to bear? What penalties do the perpetrators face?

I contacted Flavia Cherry of the Caribbean Feminists Research and Action (CAFRA) about my story and this is what she said:

In
Saint Lucia sexual harassment is a criminal offence. It is also
recognized as unlawful discrimination. The laws governing sexual
harassment are the Criminal Code and the Equality of Opportunity and
Treatment in Employment and Occupation Act .

Protection under the Criminal Code Chap 3:01
Sexual
harassment is a criminal offence which carries a penalty of
imprisonment for one year. The relevant section in the Criminal Code
applies to employers, supervisors and prospective employers.

Protection for employees
It
is a criminal offence for an employer or supervisor to make it
reasonably appear to a person that that person’s prospects or working
conditions depends on the person’s acceptance or tolerance of sexual
advances or persistent sexual suggestions from the employer or
supervisor. The employer or supervisor (as the case may be) would have
committed sexual harassment and may be imprisoned for one year.

Protection for job seekers/ prospective employees
It
is also a criminal offence for a prospective employer to make it appear
to a job seeker or a prospective employee that the offer of employment
or the terms of the employment depends on the person accepting or
tolerating sexual advances or persistent sexual suggestions from him.
The prospective employer would have committed sexual harassment and may
be imprisoned for one year.

Protection under the Equality of Opportunity and Treatment in Employment and Occupation Act 2000
The
penalty for sexual harassment under the Equality of Opportunity and
Treatment in Employment and Occupation Act is a fine of $5,000.00.

Remedies available to a victim of sexual harassment
A
victim of sexual harassment can receive damages for losses suffered as a
result of the sexual harassment. The court may even order that the
employer or relevant person make amends by employing, re-employing or
re-instating the person who was sexually harassed (as the case may be).

Of
course sexual harassment is not only limited to women. Both men and
women can be subjected to this same treatment and my focus here today in
no way minimizes the seriousness of any kind of sexual harassment
endured by men.

Victims can also call the CAFRA office for further guidance and support (758) 453-1608.

Of course the police can always be called in an emergency.

According to calypsonian Singing Sandra in her song 'Die With My Dignity' (1987)

"It have a lot of women just like me
Who might not be so well off financially
You need a job and you really need it bad
Ah man decide to help you must be glad
But if you value yourself as a woman you will be demanding respect from the vagabond
Stand up to them and let them know the truth
Is work you want you ain't no blinking prostitute...."